EFSEC application review

AN ACT Relating to improving the efficiency of the review of 1
applications by the energy facility site evaluation council; amending 2
RCW 80.50.030 and 80.50.075; adding new sections to chapter 80.50 3
RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 43.21C RCW.4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 80.50 6
RCW to read as follows: 7
(1) When considering an application for an electrical 8
transmission facility pursuant to RCW 80.50.060(1)(b)(iii) or 9
80.50.060(2)(a), the council shall consist of the chair of the 10
council and two additional members who shall be qualified by 11
experience or training in pertinent matters pertaining to 12
environmental regulations, energy infrastructure siting, Washington 13
land use practices, tribal consultation practices, and permitting. At 14
least one member of the council shall have been admitted to practice 15
law in this state and engaged in the legal profession at the time of 16
the person's appointment. 17
(2) The two additional members of the council:18
(a) Shall be appointed by the governor with the advice and 19
consent of the senate; 20
H-2879.1
HOUSE BILL 2509
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representatives Bernbaum, Parshley, Fitzgibbon, and Reed
Read first time 01/15/26. Referred to Committee on Environment &
Energy.
p. 1 HB 2509
(b) Shall not be a candidate for, nor hold any other public 1
office or trust, and shall not engage in any occupation or business 2
interfering with or inconsistent with the candidate's duty as a 3
member of the council, nor shall he or she serve on or under any 4
committee of any political party; 5
(c) Shall be appointed for a term of six years and until their 6
successors are appointed and have qualified. In case of a vacancy, it 7
shall be filled by appointment by the governor for the unexpired 8
portion of the term in which said vacancy occurs, except the terms of 9
the first two additional members shall be staggered so that one 10
member shall be appointed to serve until July 1, 2029, and the other 11
until July 1, 2032; 12
(d) May be removed for inefficiency, malfeasance, and misfeasance 13
in office, under specific written charges filed by the governor, who 14
shall transmit such written charges to the member accused and to the 15
chief justice of the supreme court. The chief justice shall thereupon 16
designate a tribunal composed of three judges of the superior court 17
to hear and adjudicate the charges. Such tribunal shall fix the time 18
of the hearing, which shall be public, and the procedure for the 19
hearing, and the decision of such tribunal shall be final and not 20
subject to review by the supreme court. Removal of any member of the 21
council by the tribunal shall disqualify such member for 22
reappointment; 23
(e) Shall be exempt from the application of Washington state 24
civil service laws pursuant to RCW 41.06.070(1)(h)(i);25
(f) Shall receive salaries set by the director on a review and 26
analysis of the duties and responsibilities of the positions and in 27
accordance with state law for exempt positions; 28
(g) For a period of one year after the termination of the 29
person's membership on the council, shall not act in a representative 30
capacity before the council on any matter. 31
(3) A majority of the council pursuant to this section shall 32
constitute a quorum for making recommendations for site 33
certifications, promulgating rules and regulations necessary for the 34
conduct of its powers and duties, or transacting other official 35
business, and may act though one position of the council be vacant. 36
One or more members may hold hearings and take testimony to be 37
reported for action by the council when authorized by rule or order 38
of the council. The council shall perform all the powers and duties 39
specified in this chapter or as otherwise provided by law as they 40
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pertain to applications for an electrical transmission facility 1
pursuant to RCW 80.50.060(1)(b)(iii) or 80.50.060(2)(a).2
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 80.50 3
RCW to read as follows: 4
(1) Applications for an electrical transmission facility made 5
pursuant to RCW 80.50.060(1)(b)(iii) or 80.50.060(2)(a) shall not be 6
required to hold a hearing pursuant to RCW 80.50.090(2), but must be 7
reviewed in an adjudicative hearing pursuant to RCW 80.50.090(4) and 8
chapter 34.05 RCW unless eligible for expedited processing under RCW 9
80.50.075. The council shall limit the topics of the adjudication to 10
the project's potential for impacts to categories identified in 11
subsection (2) of this section. 12
(2) The council's recommendation to the governor pursuant to RCW 13
80.50.100 shall be based on the following decisional criteria:14
(a) The facility will be served by adequate public facilities 15
including streets, fire protection, and utilities;16
(b) The facility will not be materially detrimental to uses or 17
property in the immediate vicinity of the subject property;18
(c) The facility complies with applicable design and development 19
standards required by this chapter; 20
(d) The design, use, and operation of the facility comply with 21
applicable state and federal statutes; and 22
(e) The proposal shall provide practicable mitigation for adverse 23
environmental impacts caused by the proposal. 24
(3) The design and development standards applicable under 25
subsection (2)(c) of this section shall be determined by council 26
staff in coordination with the applicant within 90 days of the time 27
of a complete application submission. Compliance with such design and 28
development standards shall be deemed to mitigate or avoid adverse 29
impacts to a nonsignificant level under chapter 43.21C RCW for the 30
aspects of the environment related to the applicable standard.31
(4) Application materials provided pursuant to this chapter that 32
are determined to constitute a complete application shall also be 33
deemed to be the full documentation required for the applicant to 34
demonstrate compliance with RCW 43.21C.460 and shall be included by 35
the council in their review and decision making under chapter 43.21C 36
RCW. 37
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NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 80.50 1
RCW to read as follows: 2
(1) Wind generation facilities that qualify for a categorical 3
exemption pursuant to section 4 of this act are authorized to begin:4
(a) Site preparation by grading of the site, foundation 5
excavation, or other significant earthwork on the site;6
(b) Construction of footings or foundations, form work, 7
installation of rebar, or pouring concrete for a project's major 8
components or auxiliary structures; 9
(c) Excavation for natural gas supply, water supply, water or 10
wastewater discharge pipelines or structures; 11
(d) Earthwork or construction of access or service roads, 12
electrical transmission lines, switchyard structures, or laydown 13
areas; 14
(e) Construction of service roads needed for the facility's 15
operation and maintenance following review and approval by council 16
staff; and 17
(f) Other construction of a similar scope of impact.18
(2) The commencement of construction consistent with subsection 19
(1) of this section shall be at the applicant's risk and is not a 20
basis or indication for whether any required certification amendment 21
will be approved by the council. 22
(3) Applicants for wind generation facilities that require 23
repowering and are operating under an existing certification may 24
submit an application for a minor amendment for certification if the 25
council determines that the proposed project elements of the 26
repowered facility: 27
(a) Will not be located outside of existing corridors or project 28
boundaries approved by the council for the specified wind generation 29
facility; or 30
(b) Comprise less than a 25 percent expansion of the 31
certification project boundaries and there will be no impacts to 32
Class I or Class II habitats or to cultural resources as identified 33
through on-site surveys. 34
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 43.21C 35
RCW to read as follows: 36
Any applicant operating a wind generation facility pursuant to an 37
existing certification as defined in RCW 80.50.020 that applies to 38
the council for an amendment to such certification for a repowering 39
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prior to July 4, 2026, shall be categorically exempt from the 1
requirements of this chapter if the council determines that the 2
proposed project elements of the repowered facility will not be 3
located outside of existing approved corridors or approved project 4
boundaries. 5
Sec. 5. RCW 80.50.030 and 2022 c 183 s 3 are each amended to 6
read as follows: 7
(1) The energy facility site evaluation council is created and 8
established. 9
(2) The chair of the council shall be appointed by the governor 10
with the advice and consent of the senate, shall have a vote on 11
matters before the council, shall serve for a term coextensive with 12
the term of the governor, and is removable for cause. The chair may 13
designate a member of the council to serve as acting chair in the 14
event of the chair's absence. The salary of the chair shall be 15
determined under RCW 43.03.040. The chair is a "state employee" for 16
the purposes of chapter 42.52 RCW. As applicable, when attending 17
meetings of the council, members may receive reimbursement for travel 18
expenses in accordance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060, and are 19
eligible for compensation under RCW 43.03.250. 20
(3)(a) ((The)) Except for an application for an electrical 21
transmission facility for which the council shall consist of the 22
members as provided in section 1 of this act, the council shall 23
consist of the chair of the council and: 24
(i) The director of the department of ecology or the director's 25
designee; 26
(ii) The director of the department of fish and wildlife or the 27
director's designee; 28
(iii) The director of the department of commerce or the 29
director's designee; 30
(iv) The chair of the utilities and transportation commission or 31
the chair's designee; and 32
(v) The commissioner of public lands or the commissioner's 33
designee. 34
(b) The directors, administrators, or their designees, of the 35
following departments, agencies, and commissions, or their statutory 36
successors, may participate as councilmembers at their own discretion 37
provided they elect to participate no later than sixty days after an 38
application is filed: 39
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(i) Department of agriculture; 1
(ii) Department of health; 2
(iii) Military department; and 3
(iv) Department of transportation. 4
(4) The appropriate county legislative authority of every county 5
wherein an application for a proposed site is filed shall appoint a 6
member or designee as a voting member to the council. The member or 7
designee so appointed shall sit with the council only at such times 8
as the council considers the proposed site for the county which he or 9
she represents, and such member or designee shall serve until there 10
has been a final acceptance or rejection of the proposed site.11
(5) The city legislative authority of every city within whose 12
corporate limits an energy facility is proposed to be located shall 13
appoint a member or designee as a voting member to the council. The 14
member or designee so appointed shall sit with the council only at 15
such times as the council considers the proposed site for the city 16
which he or she represents, and such member or designee shall serve 17
until there has been a final acceptance or rejection of the proposed 18
site. 19
(6) For any port district wherein an application for a proposed 20
port facility is filed subject to this chapter, the port district 21
shall appoint a member or designee as a nonvoting member to the 22
council. The member or designee so appointed shall sit with the 23
council only at such times as the council considers the proposed site 24
for the port district which he or she represents, and such member or 25
designee shall serve until there has been a final acceptance or 26
rejection of the proposed site. The provisions of this subsection 27
shall not apply if the port district is the applicant, either singly 28
or in partnership or association with any other person.29
(7) A quorum of the council consists of a majority of members 30
appointed for business to be conducted. 31
Sec. 6. RCW 80.50.075 and 2022 c 183 s 18 are each amended to 32
read as follows: 33
(1) Any person filing an application for certification of any 34
facility pursuant to this chapter may apply to the council for an 35
expedited processing of such an application. The application for 36
expedited processing shall be submitted to the council in such form 37
and manner and accompanied by such information as may be prescribed 38
by council rule. ((The))39
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(2) The council must grant an applicant expedited processing of 1
an application for certification for proposals for solar, onshore 2
wind, electricity storage, and transmission line facilities, 3
including accessory facilities required to bring those facilities to 4
commercial operation that are included in the proposal, upon finding 5
that:6
(a) The environmental impact of the proposed facility is not 7
significant or will be mitigated to a nonsignificant level under RCW 8
43.21C.031. Threshold determinations pursuant to chapter 43.21C RCW 9
for any such proposal shall be made within 90 days of the 10
determination of application completeness; and11
(b) Prior to the submission of the application, the applicant has 12
completed a preapplication process with all federally recognized 13
tribes potentially impacted by the project, as identified by the 14
council. Upon request from a potential applicant, the council shall, 15
within 14 days, provide the applicant with information identifying 16
the potentially affected federally recognized tribes. The 17
preapplication process requires the applicant to provide potentially 18
affected tribes with a project notification that includes 19
geographical location, detailed scope of the proposed project, 20
preliminary proposed project details, an opportunity to provide 21
comments, and an opportunity to meet with the applicant, before an 22
application for certification is submitted under RCW 80.50.071. The 23
applicant must document in the application that the applicant:24
(i) Provided the required notification;25
(ii) Provided reasonable opportunities for potentially affected 26
tribes to comment on the proposal and meet with the applicant;27
(iii) Included the comments provided on the proposal, if any; and28
(iv) Included the applicant's response to the comments.29
(3) For other facilities not listed in subsection (2) of this 30
section, the council may grant an applicant expedited processing of 31
an application for certification upon finding that the environmental 32
impact of the proposed facility is not significant or will be 33
mitigated to a nonsignificant level under RCW 43.21C.031 and the 34
project is found under RCW 80.50.090(2) to be consistent and in 35
compliance with city, county, or regional land use plans or zoning 36
ordinances. Proposals qualifying for expedited permitting through 37
either subsection (2) or (3) of this section shall state in their 38
proposal the applicable permitting pathway sought by the applicant.39
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(((2))) (4) Upon granting an applicant expedited processing of an 1
application for certification, the council shall not be required to:2
(a) Commission an independent study to further measure the 3
consequences of the proposed facility on the environment, 4
notwithstanding the other provisions of RCW 80.50.071; nor5
(b) Hold an adjudicative proceeding under chapter 34.05 RCW, the 6
administrative procedure act, on the application. 7
(((3))) (5) The council shall adopt rules governing the expedited 8
processing of an application for certification pursuant to this 9
section. 10
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